2009.10.23: Eric Kenefick was a high school biology and chemistry teacher in Fiji as a Peace Corps volunteer before returning to Arkansas in March 1993 when he worked as a Youth and Programme Director at Trinity United Methodist Church

Eric Kenefick was a high school biology and chemistry teacher in Fiji as a Peace Corps volunteer before returning to Arkansas in March 1993 when he worked as a Youth and Programme Director at Trinity United Methodist Church

He later went to Cambodia to work with UNICEF on preparing the National Nutrition Investment Strategy and continued to do consulting work with UNICEF and the WFP in Cambodia (including 4 months doing a refugee study in Bangladesh) until late 2000 when he moved back to the U.S. He took consulting jobs with WFP and the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Myanmar, Nepal and Cambodia until moving to Rome in 2002 to work full time with WFP in their headquarters. He spent more than three years working in the Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping (VAM) unit in Rome, mostly in survey design and analysis for measuring levels of food insecurity and malnutrition in West Africa (Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ghana), Southern Africa (Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique and Madagascar), Eastern Africa (Eritrea) and Central Asia (Tajikistan and Azerbaijan). He also spent time in Afghanistan and was part of the first assessment team, along with the CDC in Darfur in 2004.

CONWAY, Ark. (Oct. 23, 2009) – Accepting her Odyssey Medal at Hendrix College Thursday, world-renowned Little Rock architect Martha Jane Murray reminisced of her undergraduate days at Hendrix, talking about life as an art major mixed among the pre-med and pre-law students in her peer group. She acknowledged that she more realistically majored in the social elements of college life while at Hendrix, including her involvement as a Hendrix Warrior cheerleader.

Little did she know at the time, Murray would transition her art degree into a career in architecture where she would become the first LEED Accredited professional in Arkansas and utilize her skills to help rebuild New Orleans with sustainable building strategies following Hurricane Katrina. She now works for the William J. Clinton Foundation Climate Initiative where she serves as a policy associate to address global warming with large scale and replicable green building projects.

"If we were back in 1977, I think I would have been voted the least likely to receive this award," Murray said humbly. "I didn't know it would take 20 years to find it, but I'm glad that I've found a passion worth fighting for."

It's that passion and accomplishment that earned her and five other Hendrix alumni their Odyssey Medals during a special convocation at the college's Staples Auditorium. Odyssey medals are given in conjunction with the college's Founders Day to recognize outstanding accomplishments of college graduates. It is one of the highest awards attainable by college alumni.

From a Pulitzer Prize winner to an award-winning filmmaker to a groundbreaking medical researcher to a textile restorationist to an alumnus who is attempting to eliminate world hunger, Hendrix honored a diverse group of alumni Thursday, including:

[Excerpt]

Eric Kenefick ‘84 told the audience of his passion to rid the world of chronic hunger, discussing that more than 1 billion people in the world are presently malnourished. Kenefick lives in Johannesburg, South Africa, and works for the World Food Programme's Regional Bureau for eastern, central and southern Africa, which supports WFP operations in 19 countries in the region as well as working with other United Nations agencies and governments at national and regional levels. Upon graduation from Hendrix, he was a high school biology and chemistry teacher in Fiji as a Peace Corps volunteer before returning to Arkansas in March 1993 when he worked as a Youth and Programme Director at Trinity United Methodist Church. During that time, he worked with a group to establish the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCV) group for Central Arkansas. He later went to Cambodia to work with UNICEF on preparing the National Nutrition Investment Strategy and continued to do consulting work with UNICEF and the WFP in Cambodia (including 4 months doing a refugee study in Bangladesh) until late 2000 when he moved back to the U.S. He took consulting jobs with WFP and the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Myanmar, Nepal and Cambodia until moving to Rome in 2002 to work full time with WFP in their headquarters. He spent more than three years working in the Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping (VAM) unit in Rome, mostly in survey design and analysis for measuring levels of food insecurity and malnutrition in West Africa (Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ghana), Southern Africa (Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique and Madagascar), Eastern Africa (Eritrea) and Central Asia (Tajikistan and Azerbaijan). He also spent time in Afghanistan and was part of the first assessment team, along with the CDC in Darfur in 2004.

Memo to Incoming Director WilliamsPCOL has asked five prominent RPCVs and Staff to write a memo on the most important issues facing the Peace Corps today. Issues raised include the independence of the Peace Corps, political appointments at the agency, revitalizing the five-year rule, lowering the ET rate, empowering volunteers, removing financial barriers to service, increasing the agency's budget, reducing costs, and making the Peace Corps bureaucracy more efficient and responsive. Latest: Greetings from Director Williams

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Story Source: Hendrix College

This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Fiji; Awards; COS - Cambodia; COS - Nepal

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